Imagine being able to go anywhere like the beach, store or even to an amusement park. Currently, immigrants are scared to even step out of their house because of the fear of getting stopped by ICE and getting deported. Well what is an immigrant? An immigrant is an undocumented citizen who entered the US by either entering the country illegally or who entered legally but overstayed their visas. Although the incoming administration has said to only deport immigrants who have committed a crime or with final orders to be removed, now anyone who is undocumented is getting deported because of the fact they stayed or entered illegally. Although it is said they can be an influence in the US they work to support themselves and don’t really get help from the government, they even have to work under a false name or somewhere that they won’t get asked for a Social Security Card. So why should these hard working people who live by themselves or even have families be deported? They add to the population of course but based on immigrants’ stories of how they got here they had to spend money or be in danger just to have an opportunity to be able to start a good life. Trump has stated to “carry out the largest domestic deportation operation in American history.” There have been up to 60,000 families being separated. To make matters worse, people are starting to think that immigrants are animals when in reality they are humans like everyone else.
So why should Trump deport immigrants? I do understand that those who commit crimes or get a final order I know they have to get deported but what about those who have been working hard or have a family in the US? What about those who have lived in peace and haven’t committed a single crime? Why should they go? Why should they go through the trouble of being separated by their families? They may have entered illegally or stayed over their Visa but if they have respected the law and worked hard why should they go?
The first place I will introduce is Bakersfield where there have been many ICE patrols. In Bakersfield dozens of farm workers have been arrested and taken for deportation. The Border Patrol appeared without notice and parked around Home Depot where farm workers usually look for work and also appeared in their workplace and these arrests were dozens of hard working people and also some were said to be from UFW union members. Not only getting rid of the immigrants is the problem, but also this can affect the agriculture and industries when losing their workers. This can lead to less fruits and vegetables in the store causing the prices to go up. Some arrests have been made without giving the person their rights they have. For example in the article, “UFW”, it states, “Border Patrol detained the man as he walked out, Fuentes said, and then demanded the woman get out of the vehicle. When she refused, another agency parked his vehicle behind the woman, blocking her car. Fuentes said it wasn’t until the local Univision station showed up that Border Patrol agents backed up their car and allowed the woman to leave” (Sherman). This concludes that immigrants are getting arrested without even knowing their rights and their arrest can lead to financial problems.
In Santa Barbara around 1,179 immigrants have been arrested and ready for deportation. The ICE patrol have been parking and waiting for the moment to strike in stores and workplaces where most immigrants shop or work at. The whole increase in arrests has caused the community to distress and this has led to immigrants avoiding going to work or shopping once in a while which can cause the finances to go down in stores and workplaces. Even immigrants who have not committed a single crime have still gotten arrested and separated from their families. For instance, There’s a family I have become aware of and have been working with. It’s a person who is detained and has been separated from their child, and they don’t have a criminal record at all,” Frank said”(Wahab). This can conclude that just anyone can get arrested but what about those who haven’t committed a crime and have children or have worked hard for the US. Just because they’re not a US citizen but have respected and followed the laws, why should they go?
In conclusion, based on the operation Trump has been carrying out I don’t agree that immigrants that have followed the law and done nothing wrong should be deported. Their hard work is the reason the agriculture and industries have been striving and haven’t gone down. Without them the financial situations for industries can go down and cause the U.S to lose money. So I hope after you have read this your point of view og immigrants has changed to being more empathetic towards their situation.
Works Cited
Sherman, Jocelyn. “Dozens held after immigration raids targeting farm workers in Bakersfield.” United Farm Workers, 14 January 2025, https://ufw.org/breaking-dozens-held-after-immigration-raids-targeting-farm-workers-in-bakersfield/. Accessed 6 February 2025.
Wahab, Mina. “ICE Operations in Santa Barbara Spark Fear Amid Nationwide Immigration Crackdown.” ICE Operations in Santa Barbara Spark Fear Amid Nationwide Immigration Crack, 27 January 2025, https://keyt.com/news/top-stories/2025/01/27/immigration-and-customs-enforcement-agents-spotted-in-santa-barbara-and-goleta-sunday/. Accessed 6 February 2025.
